TOS Crew - Your Child's Profession of Faith

 

Grace and Truth Books is a Christian publishing ministry that doesn't merely follow the trends and offer fancy packaging but is an online bookstore with the purpose of glorifying God and offering material that will encourage people in their faith and help them find joy in following Jesus. They offered 10 selections of books to review and I was able to read Your Child's Profession of Faith by Dennis Gundersen (founder and president of Grace and Truth Books and also a Pastor for 27 years).

As a parent I always struggle between the desire that my children know Christ as their Savior and the fear that I am pushing them into a faith that is not genuine. What if your child asks to be saved? Is it a sincere desire or a passing fancy. Could it be simply for a reason as I saw with one of ours because they want to take communion? And am I brushing off a true desire? I was hoping this book would be a helpful guidebook in this area.

In Your Child's Profession of Faith, the author raises the questions: Are you instructing your children about the Lord Jesus Christ? Are you urging them to seek to know the Lord? They should be hearing a clear, resounding emphasis on the gospel...on what the Son of God came to do in seeking to save those who are lost. We should not merely be seeking to lead them to Christ by putting words in their mouths but creating an atmosphere in the home where they are at ease talking with us about knowing God.

This book reminds us of just how simplistic a child's thinking is. Even the bible makes that clear in 1 Cor. 13:11..."When I was a child, I used to speak as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man I did away with childish things." He does agree that yes, children can be converted at a young age although we may not know with certainty. And children are changeable and easily deceived which is covered in detail.

The author goes on to discuss how there is a time in a child's life where everything revolves around learning obedience to godly parents through our loving training and that this is the preparation to learn the gospel and that we need to be patient that this will direct our children to Christ.

We must not rush them into a profession of faith and then baptism. And he does cover when your child is ready for baptism and some other counsel including questions for pastoral interviews with children about baptism. Ultimately, we must be wise and be content that our children are at a stage of learning the truths of God's Word and pray that He will burn these truths into their hearts. But also..urge them in every way to focus all their attention on coming to Him, Who is the Way.

I love the author's final blessing for us as parents. Here is a portion of that.

...May you be parents who see to it that, from childhood, your children know "the holy Scriptures which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Tim. 3:15). And may they, like Moses, in their mature years forsake the passing world and follow Him!

I feel like most of the books I read have something to do with raising children which is applicable for this season in my life. I probably should be more balanced in my reading. I did find this book very helpful and filled with scripture and insight and much encouragement.  This is not a book to glance over or one to read simply for enjoyment as there are nuggets of truth you do not want to miss and really need to process through. I think it would be a good book for discussion groups to bounce thoughts off of one another. Also a good read for Pastors especially on the subject of when a child is ready to be baptized.

Grace and Truth books has the book Your Child's Profession of Faith available on their website for $7.50 and in ebook form for $5.50.

**Disclaimer -- In exchange for my honest opinion I was given a complimentary copy of Your Child's Profession of Faith.

Seppy turns Five! {November 2}

Mr. Seppy turned five years old! What a sweet age to be. A time when a child is very full of wonder and so observant still taking in everything around him. I love the chubby hands still held in mine and kissing that sweet baby-face that hasn't changed too much over these few years. A time when change is just on the horizon. How I need to remember to delight in these days!

Here is one of my favorite pictures of Seppy and his sister when he was around 18 months. Love those smiling faces! And what a little chunk Sep is! They were very good friends then and still now.

Sep's party was last week with his sister and it is a little hard to understand when exactly your birthday really is if you already had cake and presents.

For breakfast he picked french toast, sausages, and chocolate milk. And for his birthday meal out with Mommy and Dadddy he chose Culvers so he could have a hamburger and ice cream. I love the one-on-one time and a reminder of what a goofy little guy we have who makes the funniest faces.

And this past week we had the privilege of hosting three college age guys from a singing group that has been ministering at church. I think it was a bit of a glimpse into what life will be like around here in a few years. The kids all loved them and they were so sweet to also help make Seppy feel special. I missed all but the ending of their singing and it is blurry but you get the idea.

Happy 5th Birthday Sweet Boy!

TOS Crew - Beloved Books/Sugar Creek Gang

Up for review from Beloved Books was Sugar Creek Gang Audio Stories. Oh were my boys ever excited to hear this! We have heard the stories periodically on the radio (although not often as the station does not come in at home) and so we knew it would be good.

If you haven't heard of the Sugar Creek Gang it began as a series of wholesome Christian adventure books for boys and girls written by Paul Hutchens in 1939. The books are about a group of boys around the age of 10 that call themselves the "Sugar Creek Gang". They go on many adventures together and learn a lot of life lessons and about Christ along the way. Several years ago it became an Audio Adventure as it was dramatically read from the books.

Audio Adventure

We listen to a lot of radio dramas while traveling back and forth to town. When we first began the Sugar Creek Gang I wasn't sure if the kids would like it. This series is dramatically read from the book and does not have any sound effects or any other voices other than the narrator changing the tone of his voice. But as we began to listen we were immediately caught up in the story as "Bill Collins", one of the gang tells stories from his youth. It reminds me of my Dad and his brothers sitting down and telling us stories of growing up and all the mischief they got into. This series is so well done and even without additional characters the narrator's voice changes and little pauses make is seem so real.

What I love about the Sugar Creek Gang is how well it teaches values and clearly presents the gospel in a matter-of-fact sort of way. Through the stories your children learn how to respect their parents, how to work hard, how to be a good friend, to not be ashamed to be a Christian, and so much more. But I found there are life lessons for adults to glean from as well.

We now listen to the Sugar Creek Gang whenever we are in the van and we all look forward to what will happen next in the lives of Bill, Poetry, Circus, Little Jim, and the rest of the gang. And while each story builds upon the next each story can stand alone.

We reviewed Volume 1 which contains the following stories each about two hours long.

• The Swamp Robber
• The Killer Bear
• The Winter Rescue
• The Lost Campers
• Chicago Adventure
• The Secret Hideout

And if you want additional information about the Sugar Creek Gang you can see drawings from the books of what the boys might look like and see Sugar Creek in Indiana. And while there is now a video series my boys found they liked the audios so much better!

Enjoy the Sugar Creek Gang in Your home!

Beloved Books is a resource for life-affirming, wholesome literature and audio stories. There are 6 volumes of the Sugar Creek Gang Audio Adventure available from them for $54.95 each. I know my kids don't want the series to end and in a day when it is hard to find entertainment that promotes godly values it is well worth it! And it would make great gifts for birthdays or the Christmas season quickly approaching.

If you would like to hear a sample before purchasing an entire volume you can buy the complete first story of "Swamp Robber" for only $4.95 and FREE First Class postage!

Beloved Books is offering a 20% discount off your order if you use the coupon code -- SUGARCREEKGANG-20


**Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Review Crew, I received a complimentary Sugar Creek Gang Audio Adventure Volume 1 to review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Our 4H Cornfield Comedy Skit

Last weekend our children (minus Seppy and Zippy) performed a 3 minute skit along with a number of other kids from our 4H club. They presented it during the "Enchanted Forest" a fun time for kids to dress up, play games, walk through the woods listening to skits, and get candy. This was our first time being involved but the kids had so much fun! Their good friends were also in the skit which is part of why it was so fun.

Cowboy Seppy enjoyed watching over and over again and still found it funny!

When tossing around ideas my friend Barb came up with doing a cornfield comedy similar to what they did in the show Hee Haw. Do you remember that show? Well, in viewing them online now we realize many are not appropriate for children to watch. But the idea was fun. And so here is our presentation of a "Cornfield Comedy". Keep in mind that by this time the kids had been performing this over and over again for almost 2 hours, so they may lag a bit. And there is a bit of background noise of children in the audience.

One Less Orphan!

I have mentioned my cousin and his wife a number of times on my blog and most recently about their adoption adventure. Well, Jason and Heather are in China right now and little Miss Nora is officially their daughter. I am so excited for how God is working in their family!

Heather posted yesterday about the "stork bite" on the back of Nora's neck and how she almost lost it when she saw it as each of her children has had the same thing. All I could think was how awesome it is that God created Nora with that mark before Heather and Jason knew anything about her. He planned for them to be together all along. Simply amazing!

If you would like to follow their adventure -- go to Fullness-of-Grace and meet the newest addition to their family -- precious Nora.

My Little Girl is 7!

Where does the time go? I think that is the key phrase at every birthday milestone we come to. But this is the time when we really look back and reflect on the changes. Here is my little Miss at 1 years old. Hard to remember her without her long hair when she sat still and didn't move very much!

Well, my little Miss was very excited this morning to wake up to her birthday. She reminds me of her oldest brother George in that yesterday she had things all planned out. She wondered if I had the streamers ready for her doorway and of course she was planning for her special breakfast. It took me a little while to understand what she wanted as the description was "that thing you make that looks like a flower". Thankfully we figured out it was caramel rolls she wanted. (Made in a bundt pan -- hence the flower?)

Pete was quite amused with how she wants to spend her day. He said to me, "What is happening to Missy? First she wants to play a Star Wars board game and now she wants to play a football game". Yes, what indeed is happening? I suppose if she really wanted to play with her kitchen set or dolls she might not have many takers. But I know she does enjoy a lot of things that her brothers do. I am okay with that because she seems to be quite balanced and does enjoy a lot of girly things too!

Camping at the races when she was 2 and very girly indeed!

Missy is still pondering where she wants to go when John and I take her out to eat tonight. She just LOVES noodles and would eat them at every meal if she could so she thought of an Italian restaurant that Tank likes. But she also likes ice cream so she thought of a custard place. But she always comes back to the place that serves "my favorite bread, it is so good!" -- Texas Roadhouse. If we go there I don't know that we need to order her anything other than a basket of rolls. :)

The big celebration will be in a week or so as always with Mr. Seppy. I wonder what cake she will choose, or if she will even choose one. I asked her why she wanted cake since she doesn't eat it anyway and she said, "because everyone else likes it". I have been noticing lately that she does think of others quite often and I am very thankful for that and pray that character quality continues to develop in her.

Love that squinty smile!

We are so thankful for our sweet sweet girl! Happy 7th Birthday Missy Blue Eyes!

TOS Crew -- Dayspring Christian Academy

When I first showed the boys a preview of Dayspring Christian Academy's Pilgrim Story they immediately wanted to try this out. Although one of them said that all we ever learn about are the pilgrims. And sometimes it does seem that way because we go over portions of it each year in preparation for Thanksgiving. But this program looked fun.

What is Dayspring?

Dayspring Christian Academy is located in Pennsylvania and uses the Principle Approach which "draws from the classical Christian tradition by providing formal instruction in logic, rhetoric, Latin, and New Testament Greek. Classical literature at every grade level provides an enriched and highly developed vocabulary. The Principle Approach is reflective by nature, challenging students to reason from the principles of God’s Word to everyday life and to articulate them soundly in writing and speech. Through the Principle Approach, children are educated to impact their world for Christ in a dynamic and meaningful way." I like this approach to learning and recently they have begun to offer a few online courses both live and self-paced. We were able to review a Pilgrim Story.

 

What is The Pilgrim Story?

The Pilgrim Story is an interactive online video program for grades 3 - 6 written by Mary Stauffer, a teacher at Dayspring. Once you purchase the program you have access to it for 6 months. The program is self-paced so you can access it at any time of the day when your schedule allows. Using the Principle Approach it teaches the child about an important time in our nations history -- the foundation of America. It consists of 5 units with a total of 17 lessons which include:

• King Henry
• Geneva Bible
• Life in Scrooby
• Liberty of Conscience
• Leaving England
• The Second Escape Attempt
• Leiden
• Preparing to Go
• Leaving Leiden
• Conditions on the Mayflower
• Building Christian Character
• The Mayflower Compact
• Explorations
• The First Winter
• Spring, 1621
• The Wampanoag People
• The Rest of the Story

Each unit is followed by a test and there is a choice to take an essay test (of about 5 questions) which you download from the resources tab. Or you can choose a multiple choice test (of about 21 questions). As an example one question from the first unit on the essay was:

Why was the Geneva Bible an important part of history?

The multiple choice test had questions covering the 3 or 4 lessons from the unit along with definitions of the vocabulary words they learned.

Which would you choose? 

Our Experience

Our family enjoys history and I have always enjoyed studying the pilgrims simply because I love Thanksgiving and like to know the meaning behind our celebrations. Going through the Pilgrim Story was a whole new way to learn more. I had in mind for the four older boys to work through the lessons. Pete and Re-Pete were excited to get going and they were able to sit and work together. We found that because they were gathering around our laptop it was easier for only two to work on this at a time. And even then they prefer to do this on their own when the time is available as then they can pause the video and take as much time as needed to write out their answers. Each lesson took about 30 - 45 minutes to complete.

They began each lesson by downloading and printing out the worksheets they need as they are instructed to do. They then watch the video lesson which is very informative and interactive. They fill out their note sheets based on what they are learning and pause to write out the answers.  Tank (3rd grade) wasn't thrilled with the note sheets as he doesn't care for the writing but the other boys didn't have a problem with that.

The boys really enjoy working at their own pace and taking responsibility for printing out their own activity sheets and organizing their work. They can do it at any time during the day or night and it is fun too. This is something the children can do on their own. I do look over their work but the answers are taken right from the video presentation. But if your child prefers the essay test (which mine do not) you would need to be familiar with the information so you can grade their test. In taking the multiple choice test the grade is tabulated and stored for your review.

Some lessons include mapping activities and crafts if you choose to do them. And when all of the units are complete you can take a virtual tour of Plymouth, MA. Since we are saving that until the end I peaked ahead and it is similar to the rest of the program in that it is a narrated slide show. This is a very well done program and I enjoyed listening along as the boys watched.

The only thing I wish was included would be additional historical fiction reading to correlate with each lesson as in a way this seems like a narrated textbook.

Comments from Pete

"I like to learn things that I didn't know before and it is very interesting. I like that it is on the computer but there is only one problem... everyone else is on the computer before me."

Details

You can purchase The Pilgrim Story for $99 which gives you access for 6 months. This includes all of the video presentations and downloadable activity sheets and tests. 

**Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Review Crew, I received a complimentary 6-month subscription to The Pilgrim Story to review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own.